Pictures: Carnival around the world

Drum queen Juliana Alves from the Unidos da Tijuca samba school parades during carnival celebrations at the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, early Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2015. Rio de Janeiro's world-famous samba school parades held their grand finale as the five-day-long Carnival celebration came to an end on Tuesday morning.

Drum queen Juliana Alves from the Unidos da Tijuca samba school parades during carnival celebrations at the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, early Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2015. Rio de Janeiro's world-famous samba school parades held their grand finale as the five-day-long Carnival celebration came to an end on Tuesday morning. (Felipe Dana, Associated Press)

Carnival season technically begins on Jan. 6, also known as Twelfth Night and runs through Mardi Gras, which falls on Feb. 17, 2015, the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Big celebrations around the world usually occur in those final two weeks, but some happen earlier.